It was just over six years ago that we made the decision to uproot our family and relocate to Abilene, Texas in pursuit of a better life for all of us.
There have been plenty of ups and downs in that time, but we've always regarded it as the 'right' decision. We found a place here, a home. We made friends, found a Church home that we love, even found a rental house eventually that was just a perfect fit for our little niche. Tula was born here. Nine months later we nearly lost her here. We've had birthdays and funerals, broken bones and broken hearts. We've met some of the kindest people we've ever had the pleasure to know, and said goodbye to ones we wish were still around.
And now, its time for a new decision. And I pray to God above that its the right one.
I've been offered a new position, doing network security for Honeywell. It represents a large pay increase and as anyone close to us can tell you, that is very badly needed right now.
We have until next summer to relocate, but I’ll begin working remotely in just over a week. The company is paying for the relocation in full, including packers, movers, vehicles, etc. So thats one less thing to worry about. But this does mean that once again I’ll be uprooting our family and venturing into unknown territory where we have very few friends or family as contacts.
I wasn't sad when we left Lubbock. It was an adventure. A new opportunity. I’ll be sad when we leave Abilene. It did not take long for this to start feeling like Home. A large part of that has been our Church Home, University Church of Christ, who have been the most perfect church home to us that we ever could have asked for and we are heartbroken to be leaving. I'm hoping to have a chat with some of our friends in the Church and see if they have any contacts or church family recommendations in the Phoenix/Tempe area.
And of course, we are leaving behind many friends and family here, so don't expect that you Abilene locals have seen the last of us.
I'm not sure what more to say about it really. We are all frightened. We aren't totally sure what we are getting ourselves into. But we've discussed it at length and we are hoping and praying that this is the right decision for the family. Ultimately my only motivator is providing for this unique little family, and right now a larger salary is the only thing that can do that.
We love you guys. We love it here, and there will be no shortage of tears. But we have some time to ease that transition.
Please feel free to reach out to me or Andie if you have any questions. Or just say hi. Its a scary time in this country and we all need a little support from our friends now and again.
Also, there are some big scorpions in Arizona so its entirely possible I'll chicken out.
~Michael
